


To Emily on Her 37th Birthday

by mcgarrygirl78



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Drama, F/M, Friendship, Humor, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-09
Updated: 2014-10-09
Packaged: 2018-02-20 11:27:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2427011
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“That’s just a vicious rumor…it’s never been proven.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	To Emily on Her 37th Birthday

**Author's Note:**

> I have gotten so many wonderful gifts for my birthday but I wanted more Aaron and Emily. Leave it to me to get a little writer’s block and then an inkling of an idea that I did my best to try and expand on. This is for everyone in this community; you guys make everyday a good day.

Emily turned over, stretching her long limbs over the full length of the bed. The morning sun shone through the curtains and even though she smelled coffee and breakfast, she was not ready to get out of bed. She pulled his pillow close, inhaling the scent of him and smiling. Coffee was good but he really needed to be in bed with her. She wanted to cuddle, she wanted to kiss, and she wanted to be happy that she was not spending another birthday chasing after some maniac. Emily Prentiss loved her job but she had to admit to loving this a little more.

 

He was coming up the steps, she could hear him, and she made an attempt to at least smooth out her bed head. It was useless; Emily slept like a rock last night and it probably looked like it. Hotch stood in the doorway with the tray, beaming at her.

 

“Looks like Sleeping Beauty is awake.” He said.

 

“Under duress, I think. Sleep was amazing last night…you were amazing last night.”

 

“Never let it be said that Aaron Hotchner does not put his best foot forward.”

 

He came into the room and put the tray down on the bed as Emily fluffed her pillows. It was a full breakfast, pancakes, eggs, Canadian bacon, coffee, and orange juice. There was a rose in a vase and Emily smiled at Happy Birthday written in whipped cream on top of the pancakes.

 

“Hotch…”

 

“Happy birthday, baby.” He leaned and kissed her nose. Emily pulled back some. “What?”

 

“My breath must be horrid.” She covered her mouth and checked for herself.

 

“Oh please, as if I care about such things. I hope you have an appetite,” he pulled the candles from his pocket, a three and a seven, stuck them in the middle of the pancakes and lit them. “Shall I sing?”

 

“Oh yes, please do.” Emily clapped her hands.

 

“Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday dear Emily, Happy birthday to you. Make a wish.”

 

She closed her eyes, wished it could always be this way, and blew them out. Hotch kissed her again, ignoring her protests, before handing her a fork.

 

“Bon appetit.”

 

“I won't have to eat all of this by myself, will I?” Emily asked.

 

“You know that you don’t have to do anything by yourself anymore.” He grabbed his own fork.

 

“How long did this take?”

 

“Don’t worry about it…I had fun. Now tell me if it takes like crap.”

 

“I doubt that seriously.” She cut into the pancakes and slid the fork into her mouth. Emily rolled her eyes in ecstasy. “Oh my God, there is chocolate in here.”

 

“Mmm hmm; I know what you like.”

 

“Oh yes you do, SSA Hotchner.”

 

They didn’t talk much over breakfast. Emily was hungrier than she thought and it did not take the two of them long to clean the plate. She sipped the coffee, thinking of a clove as he drank the orange juice.

 

“That was so good. I might be addicted to chocolate pancakes.”

 

“I'm glad you liked it. I am glad we had today off so I could do something special for you.”

 

“Me too.”

 

Hotch put the tray on the floor beside the nightstand and wrapped his arms around Emily. She smiled when he brushed the hair from her forehead.

 

“Tell me what you wished for.” He whispered, his dimples coming out of their hiding place.

 

“If I do that, it won't come true.”

 

‘That’s just a vicious rumor…it’s never been proven.”

 

“Well I don’t want to jinx anything; I have enough to worry about.”

 

The kisses he gave her made Emily breathless and giddy. She moved over on the bed, pushing the covers back and pulling him back into bed. Breakfast had been lovely but he shouldn’t have left in the first place. They had only been home for a day and a half and she wanted him to herself for just a little while. It was usually all they got anyway.

 

“I love you,” she murmured against his mouth as their kisses intensified.

 

“Ditto.”

 

“Say it, Aaron.”

 

“I love you, Emily Prentiss. There are more birthday surprises; I want to give you presents.”

 

She was never one to turn down presents. There were other things on her mind, but they did have all day and the evening before the BAU demanded their attention once more. 

 

“I hope you didn’t go overboard.” She replied.

 

“I love that altruistic side of you but c’mon, this is a big deal.”

 

“Presents aren’t everything, Hotch.”

 

“I can take them back.” He tickled her a bit, delighting in the sound of her laughter.

 

“You will do no such thing.”

 

He reached over into the cabinet at the bottom of her nightstand, pulling out the bag. Emily propped the pillows again and they both sat up. She smiled at him.

 

“You're hiding presents in my own house now? You’re going to have me searching through my own things for goodies.”

 

“You’ve been spending a lot of time at my place,” Hotch replied. “I like that you know.”

 

“What?” Emily took the bag onto her lap.

 

“Spending time at my place. Maybe soon…”

 

He didn’t finish his sentence and Emily did not press. There was much in the way of maybe soon. There was Jack, the team, and that pesky FBI rule about fraternization. Not that it went obeyed very much. While the FBI didn’t seem to mind relationships, they hated nasty breakups. Emily had actually seen relationships implode over time between colleagues and what the aftermath was for teams. She would never let that happen with Hotch. Even if it didn’t work, and she wanted it to work, they were both mature enough to work together. She hoped. Emily pulled the iPod box out first and smiled.

 

“I already have two of these.”

 

“Oh no you don’t. This is the iPod classic, 120GB. I spent a lot of time last night converting everything…I didn’t even know you had _The Thornbirds_ on your iPod. Why carry two when you can have one that does everything for you? Her name is Nora.”

 

“You named her?”

 

“I had to register her.”

 

“Hotch…that was so sweet.”

 

“Well, there is more.”

 

Emily went back into the bag, pulling out an envelope. Inside were two tickets to the Caps game. She was just getting into hockey. She rarely admitted it to anyone, as sports had never been her thing, but there was something about the grace of ice skating and the brutality of sticks that Emily found herself enjoying more and more. Back inside the bag there was a Magic 8 ball for her desk, a sterling silver picture frame that held a picture of them at her stepmother’s birthday party, a small hardcover of Dylan Thomas poetry, and a new watch. She admired the silver watchband and the pink face. It was very Emily, girly as it was pink was a color she liked and felt good in.

 

“This is wonderful. I hope there is no date on that Caps game because who knows if we are even going to be in town. You went a little overboard but I think I will forgive you as the sentiment means so much to me.”

 

She pulled him into a hug, feeling Hotch exhale against her. When he kissed her shoulder it made Emily shiver.

 

“I think you missed something.” Hotch said, moving out of her arms.

 

“Hmm?”

 

“There is…” he reached into the bag and came out with a small jewelry box. “One more thing.”

 

“What is it?” Emily asked quietly, feeling her stomach turn to knots. She tried to swallow but had difficulty.

 

“Open it,” Hotch held the box in his palm.

 

“You open it.”

 

“You want me to open your birthday present?”

 

She nodded, closing her eyes for a moment and telling herself she was being silly. Surely it was a pair of earrings or a tennis bracelet. No, it was the wrong kind of box for a bracelet. Earrings then, it had to be earrings. Emily Prentiss could never have too many pairs of earrings. Hotch popped open the box; a strangled gasp escaped her throat. It was not a pair of earrings. It was a ring, it was her ring and she had no idea how he could possibly know that. One carat center princess cut with half-carat baguettes on each side, set in platinum.

 

“Em…”

 

“Yes. Absolutely, positively yes!”

 

“Let me ask first, baby.”

 

“OK.” Emily didn’t mean to start crying, she actually hated crying. These were tears of joy though and that was a rare occurrence.

 

“A million different things went through my head when I decided today would be the day.” Hotch took her hand. “I wanted to have this grand speech and this extravagant display. I even thought of baking it into the pancakes but realized that was probably a bad idea. I wanted it to be a story you could tell our children someday even if I'm bad at that kind of thing I wanted to be good at it today. In the end I realized that all that matters is how we both feel. 

 

“I love you; I am in love with you. There will be hurdles and I want to climb over them with you. I want to hold you as you fall asleep and some nights keep you awake satisfying you until we both pass out. I want to make you smile and will always have your back. I want you to be my wife and let me show you that all you’ve wanted and even more is just one word away. Emily Katherine Prentiss, will you marry me?”

 

“Who in their right mind would ever say no to that?” she asked.

 

“I just need _you_ to say yes.” Hotch replied.

 

“Yes,” she nodded, throwing her arms around him. “I love you too, Hotch.”

 

He kissed her, taking her hand in his. She was shaking and that made him love her even more. Two years ago when she walked into his office Hotch never thought there would be a day like this. He thought his life was laid out ahead of him like he a novel he’d read so many times it was memorized. When someone threw the book into the fire, he was left to figure out what might be on the next page. Then she was there and he was thrust into something both adventurous and unconventional. Hotch never thought he would be comfortable with unconventional but what he had with Emily had quickly become something meaningful.

 

Could he ever possibly know how much she loved him? Emily had seen her share of relationships come and go. It was actually silly to call most of them relationships. It was so hard for her to love, trust, to let herself get close to people. She had been hurt and though Emily never dare call herself a victim, she had taken a beating over time. Almost out of her 30s, she resigned herself to it never happening. 

 

Hotch was the last man she ever thought…even when he showed up that night. She questioned everything, even as her feelings deepened. It just couldn’t be. It couldn’t be this easy to fall in love. Not that what they had was easy, but it was simple. It was love and everything else was everything else.

 

 They managed to do a good job of separating work, the team, and themselves…Hotch and Prentiss were different from Aaron and Emily. Even when worlds collided, they did sometimes and probably would always, sensibility won out. Wondering too much how it all managed not to blow up in their faces would take Emily’s precious time from focusing on them. The couple didn’t have enough time as it was. She would give them every moment that she could.

 

“I need to call my parents.” Emily said, admiring the ring on her finger.

 

“Your father already knows. Surely he told your stepmother.”

 

“How…my father…Aaron…?”

 

“I asked him; he gave his blessing.”

 

“You are so amazing,” She caressed his face as he wiped her tears. “Getting older is going to be so much better together.”

 

“It certainly is. I told Jack too, when we talked on the phone last night. He is really excited to see you today and give you more birthday presents. I thought we could pick him up around two.”

 

Emily looked at the clock. That gave them at least another two hours to spend in bed. She wanted to make use of every second and looking at Hotch, Emily knew he did as well. He carefully put everything back in the gift bag, put it on the nightstand, and threw the covers over them.

 

***

                                                                                                          



End file.
